BROOKLYN, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Dejvid Mirkovic, 38, of Lake Worth, Florida, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge John Keenan, to a felony charge of conspiring to murder the U.S. District Judge (the “federal judge”) who presided over the boiler room fraud conviction of Mirkovic’s co-conspirator, a close business associate. Mirkovic and his co-conspirator agreed to pay $40,000 to an undercover police officer, who they thought was a hitman, to kill the federal judge as well as the Assistant U.S. Attorney (the “federal prosecutor”) who successfully handled the co-conspirator’s fraud prosecution. Mirkovic paid the undercover officer $22,000 in cash as a down payment for the murders of the federal judge and the federal prosecutor. Conspiring to murder a federal employee on account of the performance of official duties carries a maximum penalty of life in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. Additionally, Mirkovic agreed to the forfeiture of over $200,000, a car and four firearms.

According to case filings, law enforcement authorities learned of the plot in August 2012, when a confidential informant reported that the co-conspirator stated he wanted to torture and kill the judge and the federal prosecutor and asked the informant for assistance in arranging for a hitman to carry out the murders. During the subsequent investigation, two undercover law enforcement officers, posing as hitmen, met with Mirkovic and the co-conspirator numerous times at locations on Long Island, including at the Nassau County Correctional Center (NCCC), where the co-conspirator was being held. At one of the first meetings, the co-conspirator offered to pay one of the undercover officers $3,000 to assault an individual with whom the co-conspirator had a financial dispute. Mirkovic then met with one of the undercover officers and paid him $1,500 as a down payment for the assault. After one of the undercover officers showed proof of the purported assault of John Doe—in fact, a staged photograph and an identification card for John Doe—Mirkovic paid the undercover officer the $1,500 balance.

Later that same day, Mirkovic met with the undercover officer, relayed the co-conspirator’s instructions to murder the federal judge and federal prosecutor, and offered $40,000 for commission of the two murders. Mirkovic also gave the undercover officer a $12,000 down payment and paid an additional $10,000 the following week. Mirkovic promised payment of the final $18,000 upon confirmation of the murders. At the time of Mirkovic’s arrest at his home in Lake Worth, Florida, law enforcement officers recovered $18,000 in cash and a loaded 9mm semi-automatic handgun.

At today’s guilty plea proceeding, Mirkovic admitted under oath that he agreed to kill the federal judge and the federal prosecutor in retaliation for the performance of their duties. Mirkovic further admitted under oath that he traveled to the Eastern District of New York in September and October of 2012 and made payments for the murders.

The plea was the latest step in an investigation on the part of special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Office, under the direction of Assistant Director in Charge George Venizelos. The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Marshall L. Miller, Una A. Dean, and Brian Morris of the Eastern District of New York, under the supervision of U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul of the Western District of New York.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 19, 2013, at 3 p.m. EST, in U.S. District Court, Brooklyn, in front of Judge Keenan.